Will the sakura never end? (桜って、いつまで続くのやろう？）

In continuing with both the sakura-season and I-have-nothing-interesting-to-say theme of yesterday, I thought I would share a few more 花見 pictures from my Kyoto adventures.

This time, though, I thought I'd change it up a bit. No traditional 御所　or 哲学の道 for you today! No sir, today, we venture into the less traditional side of Kyoto. Today, we venture into...



木屋町!! Or Kiyamachi, for those of you without intimate Kyoto knowledge. Admittedly, that's nothing as bad as 先斗町... Read THAT one, Japanese students, I dare ya! Extra credit for those who get back to me with the correct ふりがな. No cheating!

Now, as you may or may not know, Kiyamachi has something of a seedy reputation, though mostly during night hours. It's where the host and hostess clubs are, mainly, along with love hotels, shady bars, and foreigner clubs. If you want sketchy in Kyoto, this is your drag.

And yet, during they day, it's lovely. And really, at night, it's only shady in atmosphere, and not truly unsafe; I walked through many a night, and return to you all unmolested. Because, after all, say what you will about Japan, but it is pretty damn safe, a fact for which I am eternally grateful.



See? They're just like the sakura everywhere else in Kyoto. Pretty, pink, and surrounded by tourists.



I also thought the river/creek/stream/whatever added a nice aesthetic touch. What can I say, we desert folk love us some water.

And speaking of tourists...



I do apologize if I captured you or anyone you know in this picture, and assure you that it was not intentional. Rather, during 花見 season in Kyoto... it's something of a miracle if you get through the day without having someone in your pictures you didn't exactly invite into them. I wanted a shot down the stream, gosh darnit, and I was going to get one, obscured by tourists or no.

Well now, there's a thought my pointless picture post (I love unintentional alliteration, don't you?) inspires... 花見 season was certainly a validation for me, especially seeing as how I lived in Kyoto. You see, that time of year, Kyoto's population nearly doubles (I may be employing hyperbole, but still) with sheer tourist inflation. So, for almost the entire month of April, I was actually more "local" than a good percentage of the people giving me funny looks. As Melon would say, put THAT in your pipe and smoke it!

Although at the same time, gaijin tourist also began to come in droves, possibly making actual locals have far more reason to think I was just another English-speaking gomer blundering through some world-travels... Oh well. I suppose you can't have everything.

This is Edo, signing off whilst wondering if anyone really likes tourists....